At least nine people in Northeast Tennessee were confirmed dead following storms that devastated areas of Washington, Johnson and Greene counties Wednesday night and early this morning, and authorities were investigating reports of more.

There were widespread reports of heavy storm damage, particularly in southern Washington and Greene counties.

Six people in the Camp Creek and Horse Creek communities of Greene County died when the high winds hit, and authorities expected that number to rise, said Heather Sipe, operations officer for Greene County Emergency Management.

The storms included two likely tornadoes that touched down in Camp Creek, but those reports could not yet be confirmed, Sipe said.

Greene authorities were awaiting confirmation on at least three more deaths, and more than 30 people had storm-related injuries in Greene, according to reports from local hospitals, Sipe said.

In Johnson County, Sheriff Mike Reece said at least two people were confirmed dead.

And in Washington County, at least one person was killed and some houses were leveled when a violent storm swept through the South Central Community in the southern part of the county overnight. Rescue personnel were trying to reach people injured or trapped by the storm.

The Associated Press reported that nearly 200 people died in the South from the storms. At least 9 people were confirmed dead in Bradley County, east of Chattanooga. In neighboring Hamilton County, 41-year-old Mai Crumley was killed Wednesday when a storm hurled a tree onto her mobile home.

Locally, Washington County Sheriff Ed Graybeal confirmed that one person died when a mobile home overturned on Guy Brown Road from what may have been a tornado. Guy Brown Road runs between Cassi Road and Liberty Church Drive off Tenn. Highway 107 near the Greene County line.

Washington County officials asked anyone who had not been able to reach relatives or friends in the South Central Community to call an emergency hot line at 257-2803. Jeff Keeling, communications director for Washington County, said authorities had described the damage from wind in southern Washington and Greene County as "devastation."

Keeling said crews were trying to clear as many lanes as possible to reach damaged areas.

Graybeal said downed power lines and trees felled by the storm made access difficult for emergency personnel.

A person was rescued this morning after the storm piled three mobile homes together on Fish Pond Road, Graybeal said. Another person had been rescued after being trapped in a house in Fall Branch in northern Washington County.

The hardest hit areas in Washington County appeared to be Cassi Road, Liberty Church Drive and Maple Swamp Road off Tenn. 107. Several houses and mobile homes were leveled or heavily damaged by the storm. Heavy damage also was reported in Fall Branch and the Blackley Creek-Glendale Road areas of Washington County.

A command post and an American Red Cross emergency shelter had been established at the Nolichucky Volunteer Fire Department.

There were unconfirmed reports of a second fatality in a field in southern Washington County, but the people who had been reported missing overnight had been accounted for this morning.

The storm damage forced Washington County schools to close because of road access in parts of the county, said Director of Schools Ron Dykes.

"We were warmed of heavy debris-laden travel routes being blocked by numerous trees," Dykes said.

He said the decision to cancel school for the day was made early and that the school system was in contact with law enforcement throughout the night.

In Southwest Virginia, NET News service reports that seven people were killed in the Glade Spring area of Washington County, Va.

Tim Estes, at official at the Washington Va. Emergency Operations Center, said as of 9 a.m. about 30 people had been taken to area hospitals. He said, "some of those injured have life-threatening injuries."

Estes said many local, regional and state responders have been assisting with search-and-rescue efforts through the night, and more help was on the way. He said there were "multiple events" in the Damascus, Glade Spring and Abingdon areas, including one near Glenrochie Country Club, which is in the Winterham community of Abingdon.

A shelter has been set up at Abingdon United Methodist Church, 101 E. Main St.


Read more: http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/News/article.php?id=89872#ixzz1KpTo3L1I

Yesterday marked the 25th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster.  The Chernobyl disaster was a nuclear accident that occurred on 26 April 1986 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in the Ukrainian SSR (now Ukraine). An explosion and fire released large quantities of radioactive contamination into the atmosphere, which spread over much of Western Russia and Europe. It is considered the worst nuclear power plant accident in history, and is one of only two classified as a level 7 event on the International Nuclear Event Scale (the other being the Fukushima I nuclear incident, which is considered far less serious and has caused no direct deaths). The battle to contain the contamination and avert a greater catastrophe ultimately involved over 500,000 workers and cost an estimated 18 billion rubles, crippling the Soviet economy.

Since 1993, renowned National Geographic photographer Gerd Ludwig has visited the site several times, creating an in-depth look at the many consequences of tragedy. The thawing of bureaucratic barriers in Ukraine enabled him to move freely within the Exclusion Zone and delve deeper into contaminated reactor than any other Western still photographer. "I know that my explorations are not without personal risk. However," he says, "I do this on behalf of otherwise voiceless victims who allow me to expose their suffering solely in the hope that tragedies like Chernobyl may be prevented in the future."

This spring, Gerd Ludwig plans to return to the reactor and the areas around it to investigate the state of contamination to the land; to report on the progress of its cleanup; and to examine the health consequences in the fallout regions of Ukraine and Belarus. Harnessing social media outlets like Facebook and Twitter, his project entitled The Long Shadow of Chernobyl is funded partially through the crowd-funding website Kickstarter, where individuals can pledge their support for the project.

The Behringer GUITAR LINK UCG102 interface is an amazing practice tool that lets you hook up your guitar to your computer in a flash, giving you the best of both worlds.

The Behringer UCG102 guitar-to-USB interface lets you jam and record using modeling amps and effects without the need for any other gear but your guitar. The compact interface links your electric guitar to a PC or Mac computer via a typical USB cable, allowing you to rock with sophisticated software such as the included Guitar Combos BEHRINGER Edition from Native Instruments, Kristal Audio Engine multi-track sequencer and Audacity audio editor. It also features a Headphone output for silent practicing.







Behringer GUITAR LINK UCG102 main features include:

• Plug in your favorite guitar and turn your PC or Mac computer into a guitar amp and recording system without the need for any other hardware
• Enjoy immediate access to "Guitar Combos BEHRINGER Edition" from Native Instruments—the leading authentic guitar amp and stomp box modeling software
• Package also includes Kristal 16-track music production and Audacity editing software
• Works directly with your PC or Mac computer—ultra-low latency ASIO driver for PC included
• Stereo Headphone output lets you jam with your computer and can also be used for monitoring with active monitor speakers
• Variable-speed file playback function for MP3, WAV, AIFF audio files—perfect for easy learning and practicing
• Powered via USB—no additional power supply required

Anchor' s Review:

I purchased the Behringer Guitar Link on Amazon for approximately $40 to interface some of the equipment I had with my pc.  As you probably already know if your pc is running vista, there is a lot of hardware that refuses to work with the operating system.  However, the plug & play connectivity allows it to interface well with the OS but there was a great deal of latency right from the start.  The drivers that Behringer provides cleared that problem up quickly though.  For the most part, this is a suitable way to connect your guitars and some other equipment to your pc for those on a tight budget and still get a relatively good sound.  I do notice some popping and crackling at times which does make it's way into my recordings.  I find that it is very useful for practice and possibly more but the popping noises do hinder it a little. 

Link for purchase from Amazon.com
Behringer Guitar Link ugc102